Effective October 1, 2011, the legislature substantially revised Florida’s Durable Power of Attorney Statute. While durable powers of attorney executed before October 1, 2011 are still effective and valid, there are at least three reasons you may wish to consult with your attorney regarding your power of attorney.
1. The new Statute includes special language related to bank and brokerage accounts which some banks and brokers may look for in the document itself when a power of attorney is presented by the Agent to access such accounts.
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Consider for a moment that you are traveling through life carrying along all of your “stuff” (a very technical term for your assets), including things like your home, investments, real estate, bank accounts, your car, etc.
If something were to happen in your life and you were to become incapacitated (unable to manage your affairs) or die, who will manage your affairs?
If you become incapacitated, your power of attorney will be able to manage your affairs for you; however what most clients do not realize is that your power of attorney terminates at death. After your death, the only person who can act for you and manage your individually owned assets is your personal representative (known as an executor in some states), who is designated in your Last Will & Testament.
To learn more about this and the other “rules” that may impact your estate planning, please join us for our next “Essentials of Estate Planning Seminar”. Upcoming seminar dates can be found at http://www.blalockwalters.com/news-and-events/events/.
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